Editing Christie's (section)

== History ==
[[File:Peep-at-Christies-Gillray.jpeg|thumb|In ''A Peep at Christies'' (1799), [[James Gillray]] caricatured actress [[Elizabeth Farren]] and huntsman [[Edward Smith-Stanley, 12th Earl of Derby|Lord Derby]] examining paintings appropriate to their tastes and heights.]]

=== Founding ===
[[File:Thomas Gainsborough (English - Portrait of James Christie (1730 - 1803) - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|''[[Portrait of James Christie]]'' by [[Thomas Gainsborough]], 1778]]
The official company literature states that founder [[James Christie (auctioneer)|James Christie]] (1730–1803) conducted the first sale in London on 5 December 1766,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.christies.com/features/welcome/|title=Christies.com – About Us|quote=James Christie conducted the first sale in London on 5 December 1766.|access-date=3 December 2008|archive-date=1 February 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130201223718/http://www.christies.com/features/welcome/|url-status=dead}}</ref> and the earliest auction catalogue the company retains is from December 1766. However, other sources note that James Christie rented auction rooms from 1762, and newspaper advertisements for Christie's sales dating from 1759 have also been traced.<ref>[[Daily Gazetteer|Gazetteer and London Daily Advertiser]] (London, England), 25 September 1762; Issue 10460</ref> After his death, Christie's son, [[James Christie the Younger]] (1773–1831) took over the business.<ref>M.A. Michael (2019). "[https://www.academia.edu/40805885/_Not_exactly_a_connoisseur_A_new_portrait_of_James_Christie_by_Benjamin_Vandergucht_1752_1794_and_the_auctioneer_s_family_history Not Exactly a Connoisseur A New Portrait of James Christie]". ''The British Art Journal'' (London: Robin Simon).''' 19''':76.</ref>

=== 20th century ===
[[File:Microcosm of London Plate 006 - Auction Room, Christie's.jpg|thumb|right|''The Microcosm of London'' (1808), an engraving of Christie's auction room]]
Christie's was a public company, listed on the [[London Stock Exchange]], from 1973 to 1999. In 1974, Jo Floyd was appointed chairman of Christie's. He served as chairman of Christie's International plc from 1976 to 1988, until handing over to [[Peter Carington, 6th Baron Carrington|Lord Carrington]], and later was a non-executive director until 1992.<ref>Sarah Lyall (27 February 1998), [https://www.nytimes.com/1999/02/27/arts/jo-floyd-74-led-growth-and-change-at-christie-s.html Jo Floyd, 74; Led Growth and Change at Christie's] ''The New York Times''.</ref> Christie's International Inc. held its first sale in the United States in 1977. Christie's growth was slow but steady since 1989, when it had 42% of the auction market.<ref name="nytimes.com">Carol Vogel (11 February 1997), [https://www.nytimes.com/1997/02/11/arts/at-the-wire-auction-fans-it-s-it-s-christie-s.html At the Wire, Auction Fans, It's, It's . . . Christie's!] ''The New York Times''.</ref>

[[File:Clay tablet, record of barley and emmer. Late Uruk period, 3300-3100 BCE. Purchased via Christie's, no provenance.jpg|thumb|Clay tablet, a record of barley and emmer. Late Uruk period, 3300–3100 BCE. Purchased via Christie's in 1989, no provenance. British Museum]]
In 1990, the company reversed a long-standing policy and guaranteed a minimum price for a collection of artworks in its May auctions.<ref>Rita Reif (12 March 1990), [https://www.nytimes.com/1990/03/12/arts/christie-s-reverses-stand-on-price-guarantees.html Christie's Reverses Stand on Price Guarantees] ''The New York Times''.</ref> In 1996, sales exceeded those of [[Sotheby's]] for the first time since 1954.<ref>Carol Vogel (6 May 1998), [https://www.nytimes.com/1998/05/06/business/international-business-frenchman-gets-big-stake-in-christie-s.html Frenchman Gets Big Stake In Christie's] ''The New York Times''.</ref> However, profits did not grow at the same pace;<ref name="Carol Vogel 1998">Carol Vogel (19 May 1998), [https://www.nytimes.com/1998/05/19/business/international-business-frenchman-seeks-the-rest-of-christie-s.html Frenchman Seeks the Rest Of Christie's] ''The New York Times''.</ref> from 1993 through 1997, Christie's annual pretax profits were about $60M , whereas Sotheby's annual pretax profits were about $265M for those years.<ref name="ReferenceA">Carol Vogel (19 February 1998), [https://www.nytimes.com/1998/02/19/arts/christie-s-ends-talks-on-takeover-by-swiss.html Christie's Ends Talks On Takeover By Swiss] ''The New York Times''.</ref>

In 1993, Christie's paid $10.9M for the London gallery [[Spink & Son]], which specialised in Oriental art and British paintings; the gallery was run as a separate entity. The company bought Leger Gallery for $3.3M in 1996, and merged it with Spink to become Spink-Leger.<ref>Carol Vogel (22 June 2001), [https://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/22/arts/inside-art-manager-and-collector.html Re: Real Estate] ''The New York Times''.</ref> Spink-Leger closed in 2002. To make itself competitive with Sotheby's in the property market, Christie's bought Great Estates in 1995, then the largest network of independent estate agents in North America, changing its name to Christie's Great Estates Inc.<ref name="nytimes.com" />

In December 1997, under the chairmanship of [[Charles Allsopp, 6th Baron Hindlip|Lord Hindlip]], Christie's put itself on the auction block, but after two months of negotiations with the consortium-led investment firm [[Warburg Dillon Read|SBC Warburg Dillon Read]] it did not attract a bid high enough to accept.<ref name="ReferenceA" /> In May 1998, [[François Pinault]]'s holding company, Groupe Artémis S.A., first bought 29.1 per cent of the company for $243.2M, and subsequently purchased the rest of it in a deal that valued the entire company at $1.2bn.<ref name="Carol Vogel 1998" /> The company has since not been reporting profits, though it gives sale totals twice a year. Its policy, in line with UK accounting standards, is to convert non-UK results using an average exchange rate weighted daily by sales throughout the year.<ref name="bloomberg.com">Scott Reyburn (17 July 2012), [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-07-17/rothko-private-sales-help-boost-christie-s-revenue-13-.html Rothko, Private Sales Help Boost Christie's Revenue 13%] ''[[Bloomberg L.P.|Bloomberg]]''.</ref>

=== 21st century ===

In 2002, Christie's France held its first auction in Paris.<ref>[[Souren Melikian]] (17 January 2004), [https://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/17/style/17iht-melik_ed3__1.html The battle of Paris: Christie's rising] ''[[International Herald Tribune]]''.</ref>

Like Sotheby's, Christie's became increasingly involved in high-profile private transactions. In 2006, Christie's offered a reported $21M guarantee to the [[Donald Judd]] Foundation and displayed the artist's works for five weeks in an exhibition that later won an [[International Association of Art Critics|AICA award]] for "Best Installation in an Alternative Space".<ref>[[Souren Melikian]] (12 January 2007), [https://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/12/arts/12iht-melik13.html How Christie's kept top spot over Sotheby's in 2006 sales] ''The New York Times''.</ref> In 2007 it brokered a $68M deal that transferred [[Thomas Eakins]]'s ''[[The Gross Clinic]]'' (1875) from the [[Jefferson Medical College]] at the [[Thomas Jefferson University]] in Philadelphia to joint ownership by the [[Philadelphia Museum of Art]] and the [[Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts]].<ref>Judd Tully (24 October 2011), [http://www.blouinartinfo.com/market-news/article/38947-private-sales-go-public-why-christies-and-sothebys-are-embracing-galleries-like-never-before Private Sales Go Public: Why Christie's and Sotheby's Are Embracing Galleries Like Never Before] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131023122731/http://www.blouinartinfo.com/market-news/article/38947-private-sales-go-public-why-christies-and-sothebys-are-embracing-galleries-like-never-before |date=23 October 2013 }} ''[[The New York Observer]]''.</ref> In the same year, the [[Haunch of Venison]] gallery<ref>Colin Gleadell (27 February 2007), [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/art/3663467/Christies-move-stuns-dealers.html Christie's move stuns dealers] ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]''.</ref> became a subsidiary of the company.<ref>Kate Taylor (16 April 2007), [http://www.nysun.com/arts/auction-houses-vs-dealers/52493/ Auction Houses Vs. Dealers] ''[[New York Sun]]''.</ref>

On 28 December 2008, ''[[The Sunday Times]]'' reported that Pinault's debts left him "considering" the sale of Christie's and that a number of "[[private equity]] groups" were thought to be interested in its acquisition.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/consumer_goods/article5404112.ece | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091009132201/http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/consumer_goods/article5404112.ece | url-status=dead | archive-date=9 October 2009 | title=Pinault woes may force Château Latour sell-off | work=(London) Sunday Times | first=Kate | last=Walsh | date=28 December 2008 | access-date=14 January 2009}}</ref> In January 2009, the company employed 2,100 people worldwide, though an unspecified number of staff and consultants were soon to be cut due to a worldwide downturn in the art market;<ref name="downturn">{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/13/business/worldbusiness/13auction.html | title=Christie's Plans Cuts as Auctions Slow | work=The New York Times|first=Julia|last=Werdigier| date=12 January 2009 | access-date=12 January 2009}}</ref> later news reports said that 300 jobs would be cut.<ref name="downturn2">{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/08/nyregion/08auction.html | title=In World of High-Glamour, Low-Pay Jobs, the Recession Has Its Bright Spots | work=The New York Times|first=Laura M. |last=Holson| date=8 February 2009 | access-date=10 February 2009}}</ref> With sales for premier Impressionist, Modern, and contemporary artworks tallying only US$248.8M in comparison to US$739M just a year before, a second round of job cuts began after May 2009.<ref name="BloombergSecondCut">{{cite news|work=Bloomberg News|date=18 June 2009|access-date=30 June 2009|title=Christie's Resumes Cutting Jobs After May N.Y. Auctions Decline|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088&sid=aqb7SPnwv3RM}}</ref>

In 2012, Impressionist works, which dominated the market during the 1980s boom, were replaced by contemporary art as Christie's top category. Asian art was the third most lucrative area.<ref name="bloomberg.com" /> With income from classic auctioneering falling, treaty sales made £413.4 million ($665M) in the first half of 2012, an increase of 53% on the same period last year; they now represent more than 18% of turnover.<ref>Georgina Adam (17 October 2012),
[http://theartnewspaper.com/articles/Battle+for+private+selling+shows/27295 Battle for private selling shows]{{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023000033/http://theartnewspaper.com/articles/Battle%2Bfor%2Bprivate%2Bselling%2Bshows/27295 |date=23 October 2012 }} ''[[The Art Newspaper]]''.</ref> The company has since promoted curated events, centred on a theme rather than an art classification or time period.<ref>{{Cite news|title = 'Curated' auctions and new buyers keep Christie's in the frame|url = http://www.ft.com/cms/s/70d74b86-c386-11e5-808f-8231cd71622e,Authorised=false.html?siteedition=uk&_i_location=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.ft.com%252Fcms%252Fs%252F0%252F70d74b86-c386-11e5-808f-8231cd71622e.html%253Fsiteedition%253Duk&_i_referer=&classification=conditional_standard&iab=barrier-app#axzz3z6fCpaCf|newspaper = Financial Times|date = 26 January 2016|access-date = 10 February 2016|issn = 0307-1766|first = Mary|last = Childs}}</ref>

As part of a companywide review in 2017, Christie's announced the layoffs of 250 employees, or 12 per cent of the total work force, based mainly in Britain and Europe.<ref name="auto">Scott Reyburn (8 March 2017), [https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/08/arts/design/christies-to-close-a-london-salesroom-and-scale-back-in-amsterdam.html Christie's to Close a London Salesroom and Scale Back in Amsterdam] ''The New York Times''.</ref>

In June 2021, Christie's Paris held its first sale dedicated to women artists, most notably [[Louise Moillon|Louise Moillon's]] ''Nature morte aux raisins et pêches''.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://observer.com/2021/06/christies-france-women-artists-auction-sale/|title=Christie's Paris is Holding Its First Sale Dedicated to Women Artists in June|work=Observer|access-date=8 June 2021|language=en}}</ref>

In 2022 Christie's sold $8.4bn in art and luxury goods, an all-time high for any auction house.<ref name="All-Time High"/><ref>{{Cite news |last=Crow |first=Kelly |date=19 December 2022 |title=Christie's Sells Record $8.4 Billion in Art, Spurred by Big Estates and Young Bidders |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/christies-sales-record-11671485386 |newspaper=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://archive.today/20221220111155/https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/christies-sales-record-11671485386 |archive-date=20 December 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Christie's agreed to acquire American [[classic car]] auction house, [[Gooding & Company]], in September 2024.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Elliot |first=Hannah |date=12 September 2024 |title=Merger of Christie's, Gooding Auction Houses Applauded as 'Overdue' |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-09-12/christie-s-auction-house-buys-gooding-and-even-competitors-are-happy |publisher=Bloomberg News |url-access=subscription}}</ref>